A charismatic, pull-no-punches player

Though he was only 32, Guillen was coming off a career-worst .248 season and fighting off criticism that his playing days were numbered.

"I told the White Sox I'm not going to steal their money," Guillen said outside the Sox's spring-training complex, then in Sarasota, Fla. "When I can't play every day, I'll just go home and play with my kids. When I'm done, maybe I'll ask [Sox Chairman] Jerry Reinsdorf for another job. I think Jerry Reinsdorf is loyal to me. He knows my dream is to finish my career here."

Seven years later, Guillen stepped into his dream job when he signed a contract to manage the White Sox, a two-year deal with a club option for a third year. If his managerial career on the South Side is halfway as interesting as his playing career there, the Sox are in for one wild ride.

Whether he was predicting he'd win the Rookie of the Year Award, criticizing the marketing department for showing couples kissing on the scoreboard during "Romance Night," ripping Comiskey Park as "a ghost town" during the 1993 American League Championship Series, harping on Frank Thomas for not respecting the game or inciting a fight with the Brewers, Guillen was never shy about letting people know what was on his mind.

A slick-fielding shortstop who was named to three All-Star teams, Guillen stuck around the majors for 16 seasons. Even more than his glove, his charismatic personality helped make him one of the more popular Sox players of the last few decades.

Guillen was not only the court jester of the clubhouse, he also was the player who delivered constructive criticism to his teammates, yelling at a young Ray Durham for wearing his cap backward during infield practice and giving Thomas an earful when Thomas was playfully fielding grounders at short during batting practice.

That was in 1992, when Guillen was sitting out the season recovering from knee surgery.

"Maybe you should practice your own position," he told Thomas. An argument ensued as the whole team watched.

"They get on each other about a lot of things," manager Gene Lamont said afterward. "Sometimes it gets heated, but I didn't see any fisticuffs."

When Guillen was with Tampa Bay in 2000, he heard about Thomas' shouting match with manager Jerry Manuel over a shuttle drill Thomas refused to run.

"He's not the kind of guy to be around young talent," Guillen said. "They thought he'd be the one to teach the kids how to play the game. They were wrong, because he doesn't know how."

Thomas was deeply hurt by Guillen's criticism, but he shrugged it off publicly.

"Ozzie is Ozzie," Thomas said. "Consider the source. It never affects me, the things he says. But as far as ripping your former teammates, it's not very professional."

Guillen was an emotional player. During the '96 season he took a bat to a sprinkler-system pipe behind the Sox's dugout at Comiskey Park, causing the pipe to burst and emit a foul odor that forced the temporary evacuation of the bench area. But he was also playful with fans and opposing players.

Still, Guillen wasn't afraid to criticize Sox fans. After the Sox lost Game 2 of the '93 ALCS to Toronto at Comiskey Park, going down 2-0 in the series, he called the ballpark "a ghost town." He then added fuel to the fire by criticizing Sox fans who chanted for Bo Jackson to pinch-hit for Joey Cora in the ninth inning.

"Fans don't know anything about baseball," Guillen said. "They don't know what the situation is. . . . The manager has to manage the way he thinks he should manage. I'll bet you if Michael Jordan put that uniform on, they'd want him to play too. . . . Fans, they have fun, but out of 46,000 people out there, maybe 1,000 know the game."

Now that Guillen is getting an opportunity to manage, the Sox might want to check that sprinkler system behind the home dugout at U.S. Cellular Field.